Warriors at Ease is committed to raising awareness about how yoga and meditation can support the health and healing of service members, veterans, and their families. Our teacher training curriculum and our outreach programs are based on evidenced-based, trauma-sensitive practices supported by research.
This page features studies, articles, research databases, and other resources that support our work.
We update this page periodically, but to stay up-to-date on the latest, we recommend downloading the FlipBoard app and following our two magazines listed below!
Warriors at Ease Magazine
This digital magazine features informative and inspiring articles about yoga, meditation, mindfulness and other topics related to mind-body fitness.
Warriors at Ease Teachers Magazine
This magazine features scientific studies and research articles that are of special interest to those in our Warriors at Ease teacher network.
Research Database
The PILOTS Database
PILOTS stands for the Published International Literature on Traumatic Stress. This database is an electronic index to the worldwide literature on PTSD and other mental health consequences of exposure to traumatic events. Unlike other databases, PILOTS does not restrict its coverage to articles appearing in selected journals. It attempts to include all publications relevant to PTSD and other forms of traumatic stress, whatever their origin without disciplinary, linguistic, or geographic limitations.
The PILOTS Database is produced by the National Center for PTSD, and is electronically available to the public. Although it is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the PILOTS database is not limited to literature on PTSD among Veterans.
Featured Research
Warrior Pose: Building Readiness Through Resilience — Yoga and Meditation
Joint Special Operations University Library, 2019
Research on Meditation Program for Psychological Stress & Well-Being
US Library of Medicine National Center for Biotechnology Information, 2014
Mindfulness Training as Cognitive Training in High-Demand Cohorts: An Initial Study in Elite MIlitary Service Members
ScienceDirect, 2018
The Emerging Role of Mindfulness Meditation as Effective Self-Management Strategy Part 1: Clinical Implications for Depression, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Anxiety
Military Medicine, 2016
Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Among Veterans: A Randomized Clinical Trial
US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health, 2015
Meditation Programs for Psychological Stress and Well-Being
US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health, 2014
Utilizing Integrative Restoration (iRest) to Enhance the Resilience of Military Couples
Currently being written for publishing
Benefits of the Restorative Exercise and Strength Training for Operational Resilience and Excellence Yoga Program for Chronic Low Back Pain in Service Members: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial
US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health
Department of Defense Suicide Event Report Calendar Year 2016
The United States Department of Defense
Evidence-Based Nonpharmacologic Strategies for Comprehensive Pain Care
EXPLORE: The Journal of Science and Healing
Military Tailored Yoga for Veterans with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
Military Medicine, 2018
Mind-Body Therapy for Military veterans with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder: A Systematic Review
The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, 2018
Yoga for Military Veterans with Chronic Low Back Pain: A Randomized Clinical Trial
American Journal of Preventative Medicine, 2017
The Safety of Yoga: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials
American Journal of Epidemiology, 2015
Effects of Sensory-Enhanced Yoga on Symptoms of Combat Stress in Deployed Military Personnel
American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 2012
Mindfulness Practice Leads to Increases in Regional Gray Matter Density
Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging, January 2011
Stress, Inflammation and Yoga Practice
Psychosom Med: Journal of Biobehavioral Medicine, February 2010
Yoga as an Adjunctive Treatment for PTSD in Latina Women
Pacific University, July 2010
Effects of Yoga on Depression and Anxiety of Women
Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice, June 2009
Effects of a Yoga Breath Intervention Alone and in Combination with an Exposure Therapy for PTSD and Depression in Survivors of the 2004 South-East Asia Tsunami
Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica, 2009
A Randomised Comparative Trial of Yoga and Relaxation to Reduce Stress and Anxiety
Complementary Therapies in Medicine, June 2007
Clinical Implications of Neuroscience Research on PTSD
Annals New York Academy of Science, June 2006
Featured Articles
Whole Health in the Whole System of the Veterans Administration: How Will We Know We Have Reached This Future State?
The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, Vol. 25, No. S1, March 2019
How I’m Managing My Chronic Pain Without Opiods
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2018
Yoga Effective at Reducing Symptoms of Depression
Medical Xpress, American Psychological Association, August 3, 2017
Study: Yoga Helps Back Pain Among Veterans
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Research & Development, July 25, 2017
Yoga Stress Relief For Soldiers
Huffington Post, Elaine Gavalas, May 17, 2012
Yoga: An Alternative Therapy for Wounded Warriors with PTSD
Warrior Care Blog, DOD Office of Warrior Care Policy, January 19, 2012
How Meditation May Change the Brain
New York Times, January 28, 2011
Harvard, Brigham Study: Yoga Eases Veterans PTSD Symptoms
WBUR.org, December 8, 2010
Yoga for Anxiety and Depression
Harvard Mental Health Newsletter, April 2009
Downloadable Resources (Studies, Articles & Interviews)
Warrior Pose: Building Readiness Through Resilience — Yoga and Meditation
How Yoga and Meditation are Helping to Heal Warfighters and Their Families
Bridging Body & Mind: Considerations for Trauma-Informed Yoga
Yoga and PTSD: An Interview with Bessel van der Kolk, MD
The Use of Yoga in Specialized VA PTSD Treatment Programs
Mindfulness Based Group Therapy in Veterans with PTSD
Yoga as an Adjunctive Treatment for PTSD
101 Health Conditions Helped by Yoga
Additional Resources
The Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury (DCoE) is a Department of Defense (DoD) organization that provides guidance across DoD programs related to psychological health and traumatic brain injury issues. Their mission is to improve the lives of our nation’s service members, families, and veterans by advancing excellence in psychological health and traumatic brain injury prevention and care. DCoE leads a groundbreaking collaborative effort that includes the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), civilian agencies, community leaders, advocacy groups, clinical experts, and academic institutions that are dedicated to expanding the state of knowledge of psychological health and TBI.
The National Intrepid Center of Excellence (NICoE) is a treatment planning and research facility located in Bethesda, Maryland. The NICoE has been designated a Center of Excellence due to its unique capabilities and mission of providing cutting edge treatment planning, diagnosis, research, and education of service members and families dealing with the signature wounds from the Afghanistan and Iraq wars such as Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and Psychological Health (PH) conditions. The NICoE provides an interdisciplinary team assessment in a holistic, patient and family-centered environment combined with high tech diagnostic capability.
National Center for PTSD aims to help veterans and others through research, education, and training on trauma and PTSD. The Center has seven divisions across the country. Although it provides no direct clinical care, they work to assure that the latest research findings help those exposed to trauma.
The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) is the Federal Government’s lead agency for scientific research on complementary and integrative health approaches. NCCIH is one of the 27 institutes and centers that make up the National Institutes of Health (NIH) within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
DoD Deployment Health Clinical Center Updated PTSD Guidelines and Recommendations Released: Learn About the Changes. The new version incorporates research conducted since the last revision in 2010 and covers treatment for both PTSD and ASD. There are several new recommendations, so both seasoned and new mental health practitioners should take time to review it.
Recommended Reading
Click here to explore books we recommend to our teachers, students, and anyone interested in this work. Please consider purchasing your books through Amazon Smile. When you select Warriors at Ease as your charitable organization of choice, we’ll get a portion of the proceeds, and you’ll help bring more yoga and meditation to the military community!
